Breast cancer is the most common malignant tumor in women. The results of breast cancer treatment to a large extent depend on the time of the primary diagnosis of the disease.
Aim: The aim of this study was to determine the most common causes of the delay and the delay time in the diagnosis of breast cancer in Polish women.
Materials and methods: The study was performed using a diagnostic survey and analysis of medical documentation from the Subcarpathian Regional Oncology Center, Poland. A total of 231 patients with diagnosed breast cancer were recruited to the study.
Results: Delays in diagnosing of breast cancer were found in 83.1% of all the patients. The average time from the first symptom observation by a woman to the first medical consultation was on average 61.7 days. The most common cause of the delay in medical consultation in the examined group was a fear of diagnosing cancer (31.2%).
Conclusions: The examined women require permanent health education in the field of breast cancer and the importance of early diagnosis of the disease for the effectiveness of treatment and prognosis.
Keywords: breast cancer; cancer prevention; diagnostics; early detection.
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